Glossary

The DPP is the head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the third most senior public prosecutor after the Attorney General (AG) and the Solicitor General (SG). The current DPP is Alison Saunders. Website: www.cps.gov.uk/basic-page/director-public-prosecutions…Continue reading

This Latin phrase refers to the presumption in law that a child is incapable of forming the criminal intent to commit an offence. Until its abolition in English law by section 34 Crime and Disorder Act 1998, it operated as a defence based on the presumption that a child under 14 years old was incapable of committing…Continue reading

A plea in criminal proceedings, based on the principle that a person should not be tried twice for the same offence arising out of the same circumstances. It is a procedural defence to a criminal charge, that the defendant has already been tried and acquitted or convicted on the same charge. If so, the court…Continue reading

In civil litigation, garnishment is the process whereby a debt, or part of a debt, owed by a third party to the defendant, can be paid directly to the claimant, in satisfaction of a judgment debt. So if person A claims money from person B and the court upholds A’s claim and orders B to…Continue reading

A small wooden hammer-like object used in American and some international courts as an instrument of case management. Though often featured in film, TV and cartoons relating to courts and as a stock image for law stories more generally, gavels are never used in English or Welsh courtrooms.…Continue reading

A summary, appearing at the beginning of a full text law report, encapsulating as precisely as possible the essential facts of the case (where relevant) and the principle(s) of law which it decides. In some jurisdictions it is known as a Syllabus. …Continue reading

An offence of a more serious type, which can be listed on an indictment and is usually tried in the Crown Court. The most serious offences are described as indictable-only, and must be tried in the Crown Court. Medium serious ones are described as triable ‘either-way’, and can be tried in the Magistrates Court unless…Continue reading

The ICC is the world’s largest business organisation, representing more than 45m companies in over 100 countries. Its stated mission includes: “to promote international trade, responsible business conduct and a global approach to regulation by combining our global influence with our unique expertise in advocacy, standard setting activities and global services.” The ICC publishes standard…Continue reading

In public or administrative law, judicial review is a form of litigation in which the act or omission of a public authority is challenged as being unlawful because the authority did not have the requisite power in law. the authority failed to follow the proper procedure. the authority behaved so irrationally, unfairly, or disproportionally as…Continue reading